Based in Expertise France’s office in Abidjan, the project assistant contributes to the organization and implementation of activities under GOGIN2 project in assistance to the project’s team and in close coordination with the Shared Support Unit (Cellule d’appui mutualisée CAM). Placed under the hierarchical responsibility of the project coordinator, he.she will support the team based in Abidjan in the logistic management of the project.
The main activities that will be organized under the GOGIN2 project include the organization of trainings, regional meetings, or field missions. Activities can take place virtually or in person, in the countries of the Gulf of Guinea (from Senegal to Angola). The number of partners requires a rigorous organization of logistics for field missions (contacts with experts, beneficiaries, service providers, travel agency etc.). The high number of activities demands great capacities of anticipation, reaction and proactivity, as well as excellent interpersonal skills.
The project assistant will be responsible for the following tasks :
Logistical organization of activities :
- In coordination with the CAM, GOGIN team and local partners, take part in the definition of logistical aspects for the activities that need to be organized in the region (19 countries in the Gulf of Guinea);
- Coordinate with the logistics unit of the CAM to identify and book travel plan, in respect of Expertise France travel procedures;
- Anticipate and follow the necessary steps for any international travel (visa requests, health requirements, safety procedures, appointment requests, mission orders…);
- Support experts with the preparation and the course of their mission;
- Coordinate with the logistics unit of the CAM to organize missions and events for the project:
- Identify, negotiate and follow up with local service providers, including catering, hostels, transportation, interpreters, etc.;
- Ensure the sending of invitation and draw up participants lists; Also ensure the preparation of participation forms and certificates;
- Collaborate with the legal unit of the CAM to draft contracts for experts or service/ good providers;
- Prepare and monitor expense report reimbursement requests;
- Collect supporting documents for archiving and auditing (invoices, boarding passes, signed attendance lists etc.)
- Collaborate with the communication unit of the CAM to proceed with the purchase of communication products (goodies, factsheet, etc) according to the needs expressed by the person in charge of communication
Administrative tasks (in coordination with the CAM)
- Contribute to the planning, the optimization and the monitoring of costs for each activity;
- In coordination with the finance team, contribute to the preparation of audits;
- Support with administrative tasks related to the implementation of the project, such as the drafting and formatting of letters, meeting reports, agenda, etc…;
- Ensure archiving of the project’s documents.
Project or context description
The Gulf of Guinea (GoG) has become a global hotspot for maritime criminality, with a wide range of threats ranging from piracy, armed robbery to kidnap-for-ransom, oil theft and bunkering, different forms of smuggling and trafficking and Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing, environmental degradation and security at ports. Despite recent improvements, coastal countries and regional institutions still need to enhance their capacities to be better equipped to address these challenges in line with the Yaoundé Code of Conduct.
Since 2016, the “Gulf of Guinea Inter-regional Network” (GoGIN) project, funded by European Union (EU) and implemented by Expertise France (EF) has been contributing to maritime safety and security in the region. This has been done through GoGIN provided technical support to the Yaoundé Architecture (YA) maritime structures including regional and zonal centres, and national bodies in charge of fighting illicit activities at sea. The support has focused mainly on promoting information exchange and coordination between countries in order to enhance collective Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA), defined as the understanding of the situation at sea, and enhancing response to incidents at sea. To this end, in 2020, GoGIN designed, in close collaboration with the Yaoundé Architecture Heads of Institutions, and developed the “Yaoundé Architecture Regional Information System” (YARIS), a web-based information exchange and coordination platform. YARIS has since then gained significant support from the GoG and international maritime security community and its deployment is one of the major contributions of the EU to the Yaoundé Architecture. The platform has been deployed across the region and currently almost all maritime centres of the YA (national and supranational) have received an initial training on YARIS.
Funded by EU and implemented by EF, GoGIN II aims to continue and enhance the work initiated by GOGIN (included its extension under GOGIN+), which ends in April 2023. Its overall objective is to contribute to improve maritime safety and security in the Gulf of Guinea in order to favour blue economy and economic development of the countries. GOGIN II’s specific objective is to make the YARIS maritime information-sharing and coordination platform operational, handed over to the Gulf of Guinea region, fully used and functioning.
To achieve these objectives, Expertise France will conduct large-scale capacity building and mentoring activities to maritime administrations and agencies of the 19 coastal states (national networks) and the centres of the Yaoundé Architecture. Moreover, YARIS will be technically enhanced based on users’ needs and YARIS Steering Committee’s guidance.
The international and regional actors, such as Maritime Domain Awareness for Trade – Gulf of Guinea (MDAT-GoG), the EU Coordinated Maritime Presence (CMP) and the individual EU Member States will be encouraged to connect and use YARIS. Finally, in order to ensure the sustainability of the system, the Action will work towards the handover of the legal ownership of YARIS to the Yaoundé Architecture, along with a transfer of competences. The ownership of YARIS by the regional structure is the defining feature of the system compared to other MDA tools being used in the region.
Required profile
Qualifications :
- Diploma in administration, logistics, events, tourism or project management ;
- 3 years’ experience at a similar position;
- Good command of desktop tools, in particular Excel and Word ;
- Knowledge of project and events management tools is an asset;
- Experience working on cooperation projects funded by the EU is also an asset.
Soft skills
- Being rigorous and well organized ;
- Capacities to anticipate and be proactive;
- Capacities to adapt quickly and be reactive ;
- Good stress management;
- Ability to work independently and multi task ;
- Excellent communication skills and team spirit ;
- Excellent command of French and English (both written and speaking – LEVEL B2 minimum). Knowledge of Portuguese or Spanish is an asset.
Additional information
Nature of the contract: Ivorian fixed-term employment contract
Start date: January 2024
Remuneration: According to the EF salary scale and profile
Note: Interested candidates are invited to submit their CV and cover letter as soon as possible.
You can also send your CV and cover letter to the following email : [email protected]
The candidate selection process will take place in three stages:
- In the first stage, a shortlist will be freely established by Expertise France.
- In the second stage, candidates from the shortlist may be invited to take written tests to assess their technical and linguistic skills.
- In the third stage, selected candidates may be invited for an interview.
